The White House concedes that it all looks very bad. But it insists this was in no way a ransom payment; the trout got in the milk for perfectly normal reasons. You see, the Iranians were suing for funds deposited with the Pentagon in 1979 for a weapons purchase that was later blocked when the ayatollahs deposed the Shah. The $400 million wasn't a ransom; it was simply the first installment of a $1.7 billion dollar settlement of that dispute. "We would not, we have not, we will not pay ransom to secure the release of U.S. citizens," top White...